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"Does Coconut Oil Clog Arteries?"
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Even if the science isn't there,
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why at least not try treating Alzheimer's
with coconut oil?
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Well, unlike other natural remedies
like the spice saffron
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which was able to beat out placebo
and seemed to work
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as well as the leading drug
without the side effects,
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coconut oil is one of the rare
plant sources of saturated fat,
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normally only found in animals,
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which tends to increase LDL
or bad cholesterol,
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the number one risk factor
for our number one killer:
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heart disease.
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You want to try coconut oil on someone
with Alzheimer's for a few days
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to see if it makes a difference?
Fine!
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I'd try almost anything,
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but if as expected
you don't see any improvement,
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I'd be hesitant to keep anyone
on it long term.
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Now, those selling coconut oil say
one needn't worry because coconut oil
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contains a saturated fat
that doesn't raise cholesterol.
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You hear the same thing
from the beef people.
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The National Cattlemen's Beef Association
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is always going on about
how beef contains a saturated fat
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called stearic acid,
unlike those evil saturated fats:
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palmitic, myristic and lauric acids
which do increase blood cholesterol levels
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stearic acid has been shown to have
a neutral effect on blood cholesterol.
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Now, see that's true,
and beef does contain stearic acid,
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but guess what?
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It has twice as much
of the palmitic and myristic,
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which they just admitted
does raise cholesterol.
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It's like Coca Cola saying
they know for a fact
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that soda doesn't make you gain weight
because Coke contains water,
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and water has a neutral effect
on weight gain.
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Yeah, but that's not the only thing in it.
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And the same thing with beef,
and the same thing with coconut oil.
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Years ago I profiled this study
that found that cholesterol levels
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were significantly lowered
during a coconut oil diet,
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but only when compared
to a butter diet.
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You know you've got a problem
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when the only way you can make
your product look good
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is to compare it to diets rich in butter.
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Yes, it made bad cholesterol go up,
but not as bad as butter,
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but how much is that really saying?
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Now that was all the science
we had for ten years,
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but four new studies
have recently come out:
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a population study
and three clinical studies.
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The population was of Filipino women,
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and although those that ate
the most coconut oil
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had the worst levels of bad cholesterol,
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those that ate the most coconut oil
were also more overweight
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which alone can raise your cholesterol.
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When the fact that the coconut oil eaters
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were eating more calories,
were more overweight
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when that was kind of factored out,
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the rise in cholesterol
lost statistical significance.
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To really control for factors, though,
you've gotta put it to the test.
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The first clinical trial involved
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giving people two tablespoons
of coconut oil a day for three months,
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and their bad cholesterol went up a bit,
but not significantly.
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During this time, though,
they were all forced to lose weight
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by being placed
on a calorie-restricted diet.
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When you lose weight,
your LDL should drop naturally.
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The fact that it didn't on the coconut oil,
suggests an adverse effect.
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The most encouraging study was this one:
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An open-label, meaning not blinded,
no control group, pilot study
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in which two tablespoons
of coconut oil a day for a month
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added to their regular diet
did not worsen their cholesterol;
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though when tested
in a better designed study
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randomized, cross-over trial,
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coconut oil did significantly worsen
bad cholesterol.
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Hence the recommendation from Harvard:
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"If you're going to use it,
use it sparingly".
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Now look, if you're eating so healthy
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that your LDL cholesterol
is under 60 or 70
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then it may not be a problem.
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Unlike saturated animal fats,
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coconut oil doesn't cause that spike
in inflammation
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immediately after consumption
of animal foods
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which makes sense because,
as you'll remember,
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it may be the dead bacterial endotoxins
in animal products
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ferried into the body by saturated fat
that are to blame.
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In this study, for example,
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they compared the effects
of chocolate cake made out of coconut oil,
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flax seed oil or cod liver oil
on the effects on inflammatory markers
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not much change
in the inflammatory gene expression
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for the coconut or flax cakes,
but cod liver oil cake may indeed be worse.